In recent years, there has been a tremendous growth in interest in the field of weight training. This interest has resulted in the development of a large number of different types of specialized apparatus and machines that are designed to exercise a specific muscle or muscle group. In the case of specialized exercise machines, it is known that they are usually complex and, thus, costly.
For the individual interested in weight training, the specialized exercise machines are usually sufficiently costly to preclude personal ownership with the exception of those who have large amounts of discretionary income. This is especially true of any of the exercise machines that are sufficiently developed as to be capable of truly isolating a particular muscle or muscle group as opposed to the so-called "all-purpose" machines that are advertised as being capable of exercising substantially all muscles or muscle groups by various rearrangements of the operating components. Since the serious weight training enthusiast knows of these limitations, and cannot afford to own a plurality of specialized exercise machines, the use of traditional "free weights" is usually preferred.
Unfortunately, the specialized exercise machines are usually viewed as being more efficient in exercising specific muscles. For instance, particularly difficult muscles to develop are the deltoid muscles on the tops of the shoulders wherein, in the case of "free weights," such muscles are conventionally exercised by grasping dumbbells in each hand and laterally raising them upwardly through a lateral shoulder abduction movement with the arms bent or extended at the elbows. As is well known to weight training enthusiasts, this is a difficult exercise to perform with dumbbells in a steady, controlled manner.
In this connection, a steady, controlled lateral abductive movement through a relatively large range of motion is known to be necessary in order to successfully exercise the deltoids. It would, thus, be highly desirable to be able to use free weights, but in a different manner from the conventional technique, e.g., on a static, portable exercise device or apparatus, that would make it possible to maximize muscular benefit to the deltoid muscles while making it difficult, if not impossible, to cause injury. If this could be achieved, the weight training enthusiast could achieve the objective of developing the deltoids without the need for access to any specialized exercise machines.
The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the foregoing problems while achieving one or more of the resulting objects.